


Arrangements

by ready_to_kick_some_ass



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Cuddling, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Holding Hands
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-22
Updated: 2019-02-22
Packaged: 2019-11-03 22:48:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,105
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17886608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ready_to_kick_some_ass/pseuds/ready_to_kick_some_ass
Summary: Best friends and roommates Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons have an arrangement. Every Sunday evening, they're watching a movie together. After Fitz accidentally picked a very sad movie, Jemma needs some cuddling. It's completely platonic of course. Since they're both enjoying it, they decide to add "cuddling on the couch" to their arrangements. But soon, their list of arrangements gets longer ...





	Arrangements

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LibbyWeasley](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LibbyWeasley/gifts).



> This story contains spoilers for the movie "Marley & Me"!

“Simmons?”

“Yes?”

“Are you … crying?”

“No.”

Fitz throws his best friend and roommate a doubtful look.

Jemma blows her nose and sighs. “Okay yes. But … Oh Fitz, you told me this is a _fun_ movie!”

“Well it is. It has a lot of funny parts.”

“But you didn’t tell me the dog dies in the end!”

“What? But I didn’t know! Do I have to read spoilers now to make sure you won’t be – Ouch!” Fitz tries to take cover when Jemma slaps him with a pillow.

On the TV the credits are still rolling.

When Jemma reaches for another tissue, Fitz asks himself if he maybe should have done more research before choosing “Marley & Me” for their Sunday movie evening. But Jemma told him to find something with animals. Something funny. The description of “Marley & Me” said it was a “comedy” and “light-hearted family fun”. Fitz thought he couldn’t do anything wrong with a comedic family fun movie.

But now Jemma’s eyes are red, there are faint tracks of tears on her cheeks and she’s still sniffling. She doesn’t look _happy_. And he can’t help but feeling like he failed. He loves their regular movie Sundays. Best moment of the week really. They sit on the couch eating junk food, forget everything stressful going on at the academy, have fun and get increasingly sleepy together. It's lovely. But now he ruined it by making Jemma sad ...

“I’m sorry,” he tells Jemma.

She looks at him surprised. “Why?”

“Well … you’re sad now.” He looks aside and bites his lip. “I don’t want you to be sad. Ever.”

“Aw Fitz. That’s sweet.” Jemma smiles and lays her hand on his shoulder. The touch is warm and soft. "I’m not _really_ sad. The movie had a lot of cute and funny scenes. I liked it. But the end … it reminded me a bit of my childhood cat Rookie. She died of cancer. I was so little when she had to be put down … I was devastated.”

“Yeah. You told me. Again. I’m sorry.” Fitz sighs. He shakes his head. “Next time we watch a movie about a monkey. Try to find a sad tragic movie involving a monkey. Bet you won’t find one!”

Jemma laughs. She blows her nose again. Then she sighs and – in a motion that seems almost unconscious – moves closer to Fitz, leaning against his side and laying her head on his shoulder.

Fitz holds his breath.

He feels her breath on his skin. It’s tickling the fine hairs at his ear. She’s so close …

He likes it when she’s close. It makes him feel light. Almost giddy. She doesn’t do such half-cuddle things often. Only sometimes when she’s very emotional. And it’s purely platonic. Of course.

For a long moment, there’s silence between them. Fitz counts Jemma’s breaths just to distract himself from the overwhelming warmth her body is radiating. She’s like the sun. A warm light lighting up the murky world wherever she goes.

“We should probably go to bed,” Jemma murmurs sometime, her eyes closed. “We have to be up early tomorrow.”

“Hmm,” Fitz hums and at the same time wishes they could stay like this forever. He also asks himself if Jemma would be terribly offended if he took her hand. Probably yes. But maybe no.  

“I really don’t want to get up,” Jemma tells him. She sounds sleepy. “You’re … comfortable.”

Fitz’s face heats up. His hand twitches. No, he tells himself sternly. There are certain … borders. Of course, he isn’t an expert, but he’s fairly sure that their kind of relationship doesn’t involve hand holding.

“They were a lovely family,” Jemma murmurs dreamily. “The people in the movie. Wish I would have a loving family one day. And a dog. And some more animals. Maybe even a monkey. You can come and pet him now and then.” She smiles up at him with sparkling eyes.

“Hmm,” Fitz makes again and feels like an idiot. His heart seems to ride intense rollercoasters inside his chest.

“You know," Jemma continues. "I think you would make a great father.”

Fitz can’t suppress a gasp.

“Yes. You’re kind and smart … Calm and patient. And sooo soft.”

“What?”

“You’re soft. You’re also making a good pillow.”

“You sound like you’re drunk, Simmons.”

“Did you put something into my cola?”

“Of course not.”

“Good,” Jemma murmurs. But all of a sudden, she perks her head up and looks at him with something like shock and guilt in her eyes.

“What?” Fitz asks worriedly. Did he do anything wrong?

Jemma makes a quiet noise and moves away from him, sitting straight up on the couch. Fitz immediately misses her warmth.

Jemma starts to play with strands of her hair. “I’m sorry … I didn’t even ask you if you’re okay with … with being so close. I basically used you as a pillow. You never agreed to it.”

“Uh.” Fitz blinks. This whole situation feels very absurd. “But … It was okay I guess?”

“Yes?”

“Yes. I, uh, I liked to feel your warmth.”

“Oh.” Jemma looks at him and blushes. “I liked your warmth too. So if we both enjoyed this, maybe we could add this sort of thing to our relationship?”

“You mean cuddling on the couch?”

“Sure. I mean, it’s not inappropriate is it?” She asks and sounds almost concerned.

Fitz shakes his head. His cheeks are burning. He feels like he’s trapped in a tropical rainforest without a single drop of water. “No I don’t think so. Cuddling fulfils some basic human needs.”

“Yes thank you,” Jemma nods relieved. “It’s just another arrangement, right?”

“Yeah. An arrangement.”

*

Next week Jemma doesn’t even wait until the end of the movie. As soon as Fitz started the film – Disney this time. The Jungle book. You can’t do anything wrong with that. It’s funny and doesn’t have a tragic end. And there are monkeys. – she cuddles close to him, lays her head on his shoulder and puts her hand on his knee.

Fitz breathes in deeply. Today his heart doesn’t only ride intense rollercoasters inside his chest. It also seems to fall off a cliff from time to time, when Jemma laughs quietly, and the soft light noise vibrates against Fitz’s ear.

He can barely follow the plot. He stares at Jemma’s hand on his knee which she only removes to take a sip of her cola and then puts it back immediately, and feels warm and confused.

When the movie is over, Jemma yawns and smiles up at him. “That was nice.”

“Yeah. No tears today, right? You see. Movies with monkeys are never sad.”

Jemma hums and pats his knee. “You’re right. There should be more monkeys in stories.”

Fitz just nods. He continues to stare at Jemma’s hand, at her perfect pale porcelain skin and there’s the question in his head again. Now that they’re cuddling on the couch, would hand-holding really be inappropriate?

Maybe it’s a sudden rush of boldness. Maybe it’s the fact that Jemma officially stated she likes his warmth and thinks he’s comfortable enough to lay her head on. Maybe it’s just his heart which screams at him for weeks whenever Jemma is near him. Whatever it is, it makes him raise his hand from the couch and put it on Jemma’s hand on his knee.

Fitz holds his breath and Jemma makes a surprised noise.

But she doesn’t pull back. She doesn’t even flinch. And when Fitz can breathe and move again, he intertwines his fingers with Jemma’s. Her skin is soft and warm.

She looks up at him right when he looks at her. Their eyes lock. The moment stands still.

He is holding hands with his best friend for years. With his roommate. And it feels just right.

“Fitz,” Jemma murmurs puzzled.

He swallows. “Sorry. I didn’t ask you if you're okay with this. But last week … what you said about cuddling on the couch. Our arrangement. I hoped we can do the same for this.”

“For hand holding?”

“Yeah.”

Jemma looks at their hands and nods. “Yes. I’d like that.”

And just like this, they add hand-holding to cuddling on the couch. It’s very simple. But at the same time, it’s more complex than they could imagine right now.

*

One week later, they don’t even watch a movie. They talk to each other. About the week, about their insufferable classmates and unsolved lab problems.

They cuddle on the couch and hold hands.

Fitz likes their arrangements. He doesn’t have to hold back anymore and feels a lot less pressure.

Jemma seems to like it too, since she only releases his hand if she really has to. She runs her thumb over his skin and it feels good.

“I’m so glad you’re here,” she tells him grimacing. “I don’t want to imagine what I would do without you, surrounded by, well …”

“Idiots?”

“I didn’t want to sound mean Fitz, but yes. Most of them really are idiots. You would think people who manage to attend Sci Ops aren’t that immature but then you listen to Milton and Susan _talking_ and can’t believe they’re standing in a lab together with you!”

“I know. I can’t believe they broke up again.”

“It’s the _third_ time for God’s sake. Why can’t they just move on. Find someone else. Someone they’re comfortable with.”

“Yeah.” Fitz throws Jemma a quick look. Someone you’re comfortable with … Well. _He_ found that person. His heart jumps an enthuiastic loop.

“And God, did you see how they kiss? It looks so … unsatisfying. It basically looks like Milton is trying to eat her nose!”

Fitz snorts.

“No really!” Jemma says shaking her head. “I can’t believe Susan likes that … I wouldn’t want to be kissed like this, I …” She looks up at Fitz with that strangely considering look she sometimes gets when she’s imaging something. “I bet you would be a great kisser, Fitz.”

Fitz flinches so violently some popcorn jumps out of the bowl he’s holding. “What?!”

“I think you would be a great kisser,” Jemma repeats patiently. “You have … nice lips. They are well-formed and look soft.”

“Uh. Thank you?” Fitz wants to hide. His face is burning and he knows he must look like a red balloon.

Jemma lays a finger on her own lips. “Oh Fitz. I think our lips would fit together perfectly!”

Fitz’s heart jumps of a especially high cliff. He gapes at her, speechless. He thinks his mind could have stopped working.

“You know,” Jemma says quietly and Fitz suddenly notices, that she’s closer. Their noses are almost touching. “I would love to try it out. Just … one time.”

And she doesn’t wait for him to answer.

She presses her lips on his.

Electric shock and the world stops turning. Time stands still. His mind is blank, and his heart is hyperventilating.

Jemma kisses him softly and carefully. She kisses him like she thinks he could pull back any moment.

And he would never do that. Because kissing Jemma Simmons … It’s a revelation. It’s a wildfire. It’s like he’s one with the sun. He never wants to do anything else for the rest of his life.

So he kisses back to show her. She makes a quiet noise in the back of her throat when his lips increase the pressure.

Soft and careful quickly changes into passionate. Their mouths open and they taste each other. Jemma pulls on his lower lips with her teeth and he gasps into her mouth. She drinks the noise and gasps back, when he instinctively lays his hand on the back of her head, running his fingers through her hair.

Neither of them knows how much time passes until they have to separate because they’re breathless and burning. They look at each other and Jemma’s hazel eyes are sparkling like a mild summer day. Fitz drowns in them and can’t look away. He doesn’t want to look away. Never again.

“Simm ... Jemma,” he breathes. Her name is like a prayer on his lips. He's always Jemma in his thoughts.

“Fitz,” she whispers and inhales shakily. She looks at their hands which are intertwined again. Tightly. “So,” she says quietly. “Is this another arrangement? Cuddling on the couch, holding hands and … kissing?”

Fitz laughs breathlessly. “Yeah. We … we can add this to the list.”

They smile at each other and feel that something important changed. But they aren’t afraid of it. Because the change is the beginning of something wonderful. Something bright and promising.

Arrangements are made and become habits. They form a whole new kind of relationship. And they enjoy every single moment of that process.

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Birthday, LibbyWeasly! <3  
> You're a wonderful person and I wish you all the best! :) 
> 
> ~
> 
> I'm not a native speaker and always grateful for being corrected! I'm constantly trying to improve my English, so please don't hesitate to tell me about mistakes. <3
> 
> Visit me on tumblr: [ready-to-kick-some-ass](https://ready-to-kick-some-ass.tumblr.com/) :)


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